Z is for

Zoo -

1. the facility where wild animals are housed for exhibition

I hate to be obvious but really, isn't this the first word everybody thinks of for the letter "Z:. Now I've been to a lot of zoos but I have to say that my favorite is Forest Park Zoo in St. Louis. I used to take the kids there every year and they loved it. It was also one of the first places that my dad took us when we landed here in IL. Lots of good memories in that place.

So that's it - the A to Z Challenge is over. I've enjoyed it and I've met some great new bloggers but have to admit that I'm glad this is it. It's been a little crazy trying to keep up with both the challenge and my normal blogging.

Y is for

yardage

1. distance measured in the aggregate number of yards; "what is the yardage of this golf course?

 When I think of yardage, I think of fabric and I think I need to go shopping for some. I've found lots of patterns for aprons on Pinterest that I'd like to make. Don't ask me why, but I just think they look "homey" and some are even sort of festive. I think I may have to make some for my daughter and daughter-in-law. I also need to get some fabric for some re-useable gift bags. I made them last year for Christmas for dil and just today my daughter texted me saying that she wanted some.

X is for

Xanthoma

1. a skin problem marked by the development (on the eyelids and neck and back) of irregular yellow nodules; sometimes attributable to disturbances of cholesterol metabolism
2. A skin disease marked by the development or irregular yellowish patches upon the skin, especially upon the eyelids; -- called also xanthelasma.

Never heard of it but it sounds pretty yucky.

W is for

Weather-Weather is the state of the atmosphere, to the degree that it is hot or cold, wet or dry, calm or stormy, clear or cloudy.Is anyone besides me worried about what the summer has in store for us? This was such a mild winter it makes me wonder. Then it did not rain on Easter Sunday here. It ALWAYS rains on Easter Sunday. I'm afraid it's going to get really hot and dry - I'm also afraid the bugs are going to be really bad since it didn't get cold enough to kill them off this winter.

V is for

Value – monetary worth, full recovered worth, worth or importance, meaning, numerical quantity, length of a note, shade of a color, sound represented

The things I value the most (not including my kids/grandchild which are of course, the most important things to me) do not necessarily have monetary worth. I value a lot of little things – like all my snowmen, my crochet hooks, a horse whisky bottle my dad gave me when I was five, the “apple butter kettle” my mother-in-law gave me, and the coffee mugs that my kids get me whenever they go somewhere mean so much to me but are not actually worth much to anybody but me.

U is for

Unemployment – the condition of having no job, the number of people who are unemployed in an area, often given as a percentage of the total labor force

Been there – done that – DON’T want to do it again. I have been “downsized” out of a job twice in my life, first at a company I worked at for 13 years, second at a job I spent 12 year at. I’m hoping my current job will be my last, but who knows in this economy. There simply is no job security any more. The last unemployment figure for this area was 9.6% - way too high.

T is for

Tongue-tied: unable to speak because of awe, shyness or embarrassment, unable to move the tongue freely because of tongue-tie

I’ve been tongue-tied lots in my life. I was very shy when I was younger, especially after my family moved to IL. My classmates thought that my southern accent was something to be made fun of so I just kept my mouth shut most of the time. Now I just don’t care – and I rather like the southern accent!

I had to look up tongue-tie to make sense of the last definition:  tongue-tie – to make somebody unable to speak, the inability to move the tongue with the normal amount of freedom because the small membrane (frenulum) that attaches the tongue to the floor of the mouth is unusually short.

S is for

Scratch – make mark, tear skin, make scraping movement, make harsh noise, relieve itching, product scraping sound from record, cause itching, drag along surface, write with sharp instrument, pen quickly, delete, cancel, search aimlessly, withdraw from competition, incur penalty, make fluke shot, just get by

I think this one is the winner for the most definitions, seventeen in all. But I knew all of these! My first thought when I think of the word scratch – probably #17. I’ve been scratching out a living for a long time and will (hopefully) continue to do so for some time to come. I truly believe that some of us were not meant to be wealthy and that’s ok with me. As long as the bills are paid and I can put food on the table – it’s all good!

R is for

Remainder – what is left of, amount left over after division, unsold book, interest in somebody else’s estate

What’s left of – get that. Amount left over after division – elementary school learning. Unsold book?  Once again, I am learning things here. I can understand that what is not sold is a remainder but why books in particular? Why, for instance, aren’t the gourds that don’t get sold at Farmers Market called the remainder? Perhaps some clerk, returning to the shop said to the owner, “here is the remainder” meaning what they didn’t sell and it sort of caught on in that shop. Then the shop owner used with his supplier and they started using it too – and so on.

Q is for

Queue – set of computer tasks, line, list of data elements, man’s pigtail in former times

I never knew that the little braid worn by soldiers in the 18th and 19^th centuries was called a queue. This challenge is teaching me things. Remember about 20 years ago when all the guys were wearing these little braids in the back again? I never could see the point – looked kind of dumb to me. Isn’t it strange how these fads always seem to come back – just like fashion. I could probably wear a lot of the clothes I wore in high school (30 some years ago) today and I’d fit right in.

P is for

Pulse – regular beat of blood flow; single beat of blood flow; rhythmical beat; change or repeating change in magnitude; current attitudes; vitality

The pulse of life lies within the pulsing of time! Pretty much sums it up doesn’t it? My best friend in grade school had the last name of “Pulse.” We spent lots of time together doing lots of kid things. We giggled about boys and claimed we hated them when we really liked them. She died at the age of 29 from breast cancer because she refused to have a mastectomy. It was really sad, she left 3 little ones without a mom.

O is for

Ornament – decorative object; decoration; something that decorates; embellishing note; valued person

Valued person - somebody whose presence is a source of pride or honor. I guess that means my new grandson is an “ornament” – he’s definitely a source of pride and honor – but it just doesn’t seem right to call a person an ornament. Is it me? Has anyone ever heard ornament used in that context. Neither have I heard it used in the context of embellishing note. -  a note or set of notes added to embellish a melody or harmony. When I think of ornament, I think of Christmas ornaments and on my tree, they are all snowmen!

N is for

Nostalgia – sentimental recollection; things that arouse nostalgia; homesickness

Do you ever get nostalgic? I do – often when I read someone’s post it will remind me of the mountains that I still consider home. Then I get homesick. I haven’t been “home” since last June, and that was a flying trip for a funeral. It seems like that is the only time I get there anymore. I used to go down once or twice a year just for pleasure but haven’t since my dad passed away – just doesn’t seem the same I guess. That and the price of gas – it would cost me around $250 to make the trip with gas at $4.00 a gallon.

M is for

Mad – very angry; offensive term; very unwise or rash; wildly excited; frantic; rambunctious; seized by uncontrollable emotion; passionate about; markedly aggressive; rabid

I may get a little upset about something once in a while but I get over it pretty quickly and don’t often get truly angry. If I am actually upset enough to say something - it is not pretty – you could say “raving maniac.” To give you a hint, my ex-husband used to say that when my green eyes started flashing and smoke started coming out of my ears, it was time to vacate the premises. Being angry makes me physically ill for days afterward and I don’t like it – don’t make me mad!

L is for

Lecture hall: a large room with tiered or auditorium style seating or a building used for holding lectures.

HATED classes held in lecture halls with hundreds of students – it’s almost impossible for me to get anything out of a class like that. I need a little more interaction. But I can see that they are necessary. Most freshman classes consist of general studies courses that are taken by hundreds of students. Read the book, go to class, take notes- you’ll do ok. I do wonder if online learning will change that, seems like most of these could be taught online to me. What do you think?

K is for

Kick – strike with the foot; make a thrashing movement; raise the leg high, recoil; score goal; object; blame; have fun

When I think of kick, my first thought is kick boxing. Tae bo in particular – I lost 63 pounds doing it right before my daughter’s wedding – I really need to do that again! It’s been three years but I’ve put about 40 of those pounds back on. For the past two years I’ve been gaining and losing the same 15 pounds. I just can’t seem to get motivated and stay motivated. I did the Christmas Dress Challenge and did ok but haven’t done anything since and I know I have to – it’s almost time to put the pool up!

J is for

June bug – a large brown flying beetle that is seen in late spring and feeds on leaves; Native to North America.

I really hate June bugs. I know they won’t hurt me but the loud buzzing they make always startles me – and why do they have to land on me – or in my pool – I swear, most mornings I’ll find at least a dozen of them floating around! They also like to cling to the screens on windows or doors. They must be attracted to the lights from inside but I don’t know that I’ve ever seen one “flying” during the daytime.

I is for

Iliad-an ancient Greek epic poem, describing the siege and capture of Troy, ascribed to Homer and probably composed by oral tradition over several centuries before 700 B.C.

I personally did not know much about this “poem” but the Biz tells me that “O Brother, Where Art Thou” was based on it.  I wasn’t sure if I believed him or not so I looked it up and according to Wikipedia the movie was: Set in 1937 rural Mississippi[3] during the Great Depression, the film's story is a modern satire loosely based on Homer’s Odyssey. OK – Odyssey, Iliad – can anybody set me/him straight?

H is for

hoe cake – a bread made with cornmeal

Yes, I was raised in the south and I do like hoecakes, although they have always been referred to as corn fritters in my family. I truly believe that the term hoe cake was revived by Paula Deen, who actually reminds me somewhat of my aunt Evelyn. I don’t think I had heard it in years before her show started airing. Anyway – about the hoe cakes – they’re very good when they’re hot with some butter spread on top, but lose a lot when they cool down. They can be heated in the microwave but still won’t be quite as good as they are right off the griddle.

G is for

Get-go – the very beginning of something

Ok, I was a little surprised to find this in the dictionary. Is this really a word? Please refer back to the letter “E” – could this be part of the problem? When did slang become dictionary worthy? I had to look up “ain’t” and sure enough – it was there. Does anybody besides me remember grammar school? Using the word “ain’t” was a sure way to get sent to the principal’s office in my day. It’s no wonder kids can’t speak properly, much less write a paper. I think it’s sad.